I’m not a big fan of fall weather. In fact, you could say that I’m a sum­mer girl through and through and although end­less dark days and cold tem­per­a­tures can some­times get me down; I always look for­ward to dig­ging into all of my very favourite com­fort foods. The foods that warm you from the inside and taste bet­ter the longer they sim­mer on the stove or bake in the oven. One of my favourite go-​to meals is soup — pretty much any vari­ety, so long as it’s pip­ing hot and brim­ming with loads of yummy goodness.

I love its ver­sa­til­ity and ease of prepa­ra­tion; it can be a light in-​between meal or a quick yet sat­is­fy­ing sup­per. This split pea soup recipe is one that I return to over and over because it’s so sim­ple to pre­pare and always delicious.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. This recipe can eas­ily be dou­bled and freezes well.

Split Pea Soup

1 T olive oil

1 onion, diced

2 car­rots, peeled and diced

2 cel­ery stalks, diced

2 gar­lic cloves, minced

¹¹⁄₂ cups split peas*

6 cups low sodium chicken or veg­etable broth, canned or homemade

1 bay leaf

2 T fresh dill, chopped

2 T fresh Ital­ian pars­ley, chopped

sea salt and freshly ground pep­per, to taste

1. In a large stock­pot, over low heat, sweat onion, cel­ery, car­rots and gar­lic until slightly soft­ened, about 10 minutes.
2. Place split peas in medium-​sized bowl and cover with cold water. Pour off water and repeat twice or until water is no longer cloudy.
3. Add rinsed peas to pot and cover with broth; add bay leaf and bring to boil.
4. Reduce heat to sim­mer and cook for approx­i­mately 45 min­utes. Stir occa­sion­ally; adding water if soup appears too thick.
5. Add fresh herbs and con­tinue to cook for another 15 min­utes or until peas are soft.
6. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Pour soup into blender (optional, but it gives the soup a lus­cious tex­ture) and blend until smooth and creamy.

* Peas are an excel­lent source of sol­u­ble fibre and help to bind up cholesterol-​containing bile and move out it out of your body. A sin­gle cup of cooked dried peas in your daily diet pro­vides 65.1% of the rec­om­mended daily fibre. They also con­tain a good amount of pro­tein, two B vit­a­mins and sev­eral impor­tant min­er­als. Peas also con­tain isoflavones which may be help­ful in reduc­ing the risk of breast and prostate cancer.